Crank-hanger.



No. 658,400. Patented Sept. 25; 1900. J. E. ROBERTS.

CRANK HANGER.

(Application filed Nov. 27,1899.r 4N0 Modal.)

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B awuewtoz Witwaowa 3 6: 9 W Y W /l/MX W m 'ilNrrE STATES ATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. ROBERTS, OF JAMESTOWN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR To THE STRAIGHT MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OE SAME PLACE.

CRANK-HANGER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 658,400, dated September 25, 1900.

Application filed November 27, 1899. Serial No. 738,435. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN E. ROBERTS, a citizen of the United States,residing at J amestown, in the county of Chautauqua and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Crank-Hangers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to bicycles; and it consists in an improved crank-shaft hanger, as hereinafter set forth,and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The common practice is to make the crankshaft hanger integral With the union connecting the seat-post, front reach, and rear fork. There are some objections to this construction in spite of its many advantages. In my invention the hanger is separate from the union, being fastened thereto by bolts, so that it can be detached therefrom, thus permitting the hanger, shaft, and cranks to be removed from the bicycle without taking the shaft out of the hanger, which is sometimes a convenience in making repairs.

In the drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal section taken transverse to the hanger and showing portions of the seat-post, front reach, and rear fork. Fig. 2 is a plan view, and Fig. 3 is a front view, partly in section.

The union A for connecting the seat-post, front reach, and rear fork is a tubular structure having a lune-shaped cross-section, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. The upper side of the union is convex and the necks a for the connecting parts of the frame are integral therewith, as usual. The under side of the union is concave or arched upwardly, as shown at a. The crank-shaft hanger B is a short section of straight cylindrical tubing of suitable diameter and of a curvature to fit snugly into the concave portion of the union.

It depends below the union, as shown, and is held in place by any suitable detachable fastening device, preferably two bolts 0, which pass through the upper side of the hanger and the lower and upper sides of the union, as shown, on each side of the seat-post D.

It will be seen that the pull of the drivingchain tends to roll the hanger B downwardly out of its seat in the union, turning itaround the rear edge of the union at a This tendency is resisted by the bolts C, which are thus subjected to nearly a direct longitudinal tension. These bolts also bind together the upper and lower sides of the union, preventing it from being distorted by the strains to which it is subjected.

This construction is simple and strong and has the advantage that the hanger, with the crank-shaft, cranks, and driving-sprocket, can be easily detached from the frame when desired by merely unfastening the bolts 0.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A union for connecting the seat-post, front reach and rear fork of a bicycle, having a lune-shaped cross-section.

2. A union for connecting the seat-post,

front reach and rear fork of a bicycle, composed of a hollow tube having a lune-shaped cross-section.

3. The combination with a union having a convex upper side and a concave under side,

forming a hollow tube lune-shaped in crossseetion, of a crank-shaft hanger composed of a short section of tubing seated snugly up against said concave under side, and bolts passing through the upper side of said hanger, and both the upper and under sides of the union on each side of the seat-post neck.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN E. ROBERTS.

Witnesses:

H. R. LEWIS, EMMA SIEGEL. 

